Spain secured their place in the World Cup final following a dominant 2-0 victory over France in Dallas. The European champions, now unbeaten in a record-equalling 37 matches, will face either England or Argentina in New Jersey this Sunday. For France, the defeat marked the end of Didier Deschamps' 14-year tenure as the national team manager.
The breakthrough arrived in the 22nd minute when Mikel Oyarzabal converted a penalty, marking his fifth goal of the tournament. The spot-kick was awarded after Lucas Digne fouled Lamine Yamal inside the box. France’s evening worsened shortly after the half-hour mark when central defender William Saliba was forced off due to a back injury, with Maxence Lacroix entering as his replacement. Despite France's attempts to find an equalizer, including a 36th-minute effort from Bradley Barcola, the Spanish defense remained resolute. Goalkeeper Unai Simon also performed well, notably rushing out to clear a dangerous through-ball from Adrien Rabiot just before Kylian Mbappe could reach it in the 42nd minute. The French struggled to find momentum as key players like Mbappe, Michael Olise, and Ousmane Dembele were kept largely quiet by the Spanish side.
Luis de la Fuente’s men picked up where they had left off after the break, denying France time and space and therefore the ability to belatedly establish a much-needed rhythm, to their opponents’ mounting frustration. Spain extended their lead within seconds of Deschamps replacing Barcola with Desire Doue, as Pedro Porro exchanged passes with Dani Olmo before lifting his shot over the helpless Mike Maignan. Marc Cucurella had to get a toe to Mbappe’s 67th-minute attempt to protect Simon, but substitute Ferran Torres headed wide at the other end 12 minutes from time as De la Fuente’s side eased across the finishing line.
The report also notes separate developments in the Premier League, where officials issued a statement explaining why Tottenham midfielder James Maddison was not awarded a penalty during a draw against Leeds. The league clarified the decision regarding the incident, which occurred during the player's return from injury.
Bradley Barcola, preferred to Desire Doue in Deschamps’ starting line-up, served warning of his intent with an early surge down the left wing, but it was the Spaniards who threatened when, after Alex Baena had drilled a free-kick harmlessly into the defensive wall, Lamine Yamal latched on to the rebound to send in a de
Oyarzabal fired over on the turn and with Yamal starting to torment Digne, the 2010 winners remained on top, prompting Deschamps to replace Barcola with Doue 12 minutes into the second half in a desperate search for inspiration.
